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Biden’s Son-in-Law Advised Campaign on COVID While Investing in Pandemic Startups, Says Report

Howard Krein’s venture-capital business has been investing in pandemic-related health-care startups while advising Biden’s campaign on COVID-19.

It was reported early on in the coronavirus pandemic that Joe Biden’s son-in-law, Howard Krein, was advising Biden’s campaign on how it should be responding to the public-health crisis. But now Politico reports that Krein’s venture-capital business has simultaneously been investing in health-care startups that offer solutions to deal with the pandemic, presenting a possible conflict of interest. StartUp Health unveiled its initiative in March, and Krein, a doctor in Philadelphia, was named among Biden’s COVID-19 advisers a month later. When asked about the arrangement by Politico, a Biden campaign official said that Krein has no formal role in the campaign, but has participated in calls briefing Biden on the pandemic. Krein is StartUp Health’s chief medical officer, and the company has reportedly invested in more than 300 health-care businesses.